The right mix for success

We had developed a hypothesis in the previous article in this column that

there is as much or more value in becoming a knowledge corporation as there is

in aspiring and attaining SEI CMM level 5 status for any IT Services firm

seeking global success. In the study of software and other services firms that

this author has done as part of an IIT Mumbai–School of Management study, two

key truths have been revealed.

There is a clear Knowledge Maturity Model that can be developed to serve as a

diagnostic as well as prescriptive tool for any Industry/Function combination.

This model can map and move an organization through three stages…

l Knowledge Initiation



l Knowledge Action



l Knowledge Maturity

In each stage of knowledge maturity, the organization will have to manage

four factors simultaneously. These are…

l Business

Process Readiness



l Technology Infrastructure



l Human Behavior



l Leadership

Business Process Readiness can be defined as the ability of

the function to capture, store, disseminate, and use knowledge across its

various constituents efficiently and effectively.

In the case of the customer facing functions in IT services

companies, which is the focus of this research, the core processes would include

customer identification, enquiry handling, order winning, contract execution and

customer service.

Technology Infrastructure



Technology infrastructure encompasses the integration of the core or bedrock

systems in the organization to enable quick access to information needed for

effective monitoring and decision making. Specific usage of business

intelligence and knowledge management tools would be an additional requirement

as the organization progresses to higher k-stages. In the case of the customer

facing functions in IT services companies, availability of distributed

technology infrastructure across all sales offices, integration with core

customer order processing and ERP systems and application of business

intelligence, sales force automation and CRM tools would be core.

Human Behavior



Human Behavior is a key K-Factor which would determine both the

technological and psychological readiness of people to move towards a knowledge

sharing environment which is key to the progress of the organization across

various K-stages. In the case of the customer facing functions in IT services

companies, culture and norms of behavior would vary widely across three key

stakeholder sets, namely the marketing function, the sales teams and the

delivery organization, all of whom would play key roles in optimizing

performance.

Leadership



Leadership is the make or break K-factor in the success of any knowledge

management initiative. Many companies are able to move out of their initial

chaotic state to some level of knowledge initiation, but are unable to graduate

to K-Action because of lack of continuing leadership focus. In the case of the

customer facing functions in IT services companies, leadership focus is easier

to achieve since sales inevitably is the key focus area of all CEOs. Hence, if

the right planning and control tools are provided, this could well be the best

managed K-Factor in any successful knowledge corporation.

Each of these K-Factors exhibit measurable changes as the

organization moves through the different stages of knowledge. In the

preknowledge state, which is typical of newly minted entrepreneurial firms,

leadership is defined by the dictates of the leader and most processes tend to

be situation dependent with technologies for any form of workflow or information

capture missing. As the organization moves through the next two stages of

knowledge initiation and action, it is likely to see both processes and

technology maturing. On the processes side, the focus moves from functional

fiefdoms to customer oriented processes and an active move to not only use but

also capture tacit knowledge on an ongoing basis.

On the technology front, simple integrating tools like Share

point Portal become the initial implementation of KM, and are then embellished

with workflow and business intelligence tools and the building of data

warehouses and data as well as knowledge mining. This leads to the formation of

active knowledge communities and the use of knowledge portals, which also forces

change in the behavior of individuals and teams. The behavior factor is also

influenced by the role that leadership begins to play and as more and more

decisions move from reactive and ad-hoc mode to well researched and knowledge

enabled processes, the knowledge corporation begins to blossom and flourish.

The knowledge maturity process is as fascinating as the

chrysalis of the caterpillar into a butterfly. The tragedy is that this process

is not a matter of time but more a matter of choice. Many "old

economy" organizations choose not to make the transition but in the world

of information technology with more and more IT services and BPO firms from

India now sprouting global wins, knowledge corporations are no longer a choice

but an imperative for success in a highly competitive world.

Ganesh Natarajan



The author is the global CEO of Zensar Technologies